Stronger by Ang Chris
Chapter 73

Annettes POV:

I’d known something was wrong when I’d woken up the next morning Grayson hadn’t told me he andJames were all right during the night.

The three weeks after fell like a taste of damnation.

They knew Grayson was away so, of course, they came for me. What they didn’t expect was mystratified mother to be

there.

Our scouts alerted us to the small battalion of wolves on our southern border and all my y mother didwas give a wicked grin.

“Let them come and play,” she told the scouts.

“We’ll send our troops out to the west and they’ll wait for them, we will sandwich them as they try andcamp down before the gates,” She instructed them a gleam in her eyes.

“Charles it’s time to train,” she grabbed my brother by his arm.

I had begged her to stay with me and not go out and fight but Matt patted my shoulder. “You’ll be welldefended and I have a feeling your mother will return,” he smiled at me.

I felt guilty putting my family’s lives on the line while sat and did nothing. All I could do was nothing, thebaby in my belly was my sole responsibility.

“Stay with us Luna,” Elizebeth calmed me and grabbed my hand leading me back to the house.

I rubbed the now more obvious curve in my belly. It was still on the small side but you had more of aclue I was with

child.

*were safe

I’d tell him that even when it was questionable. He needed to come home and if he knew I was in theslightest bit of danger he’d be distracted.

My mother and Charlie left with Brian and d a group of other warriors. We had Leon and Aarron holdthe fort at the gates we wanted them blindsided when they tried to get within the closer limits.

“I’ll take the Luna to a safe location,” Matt explained to his other colleagues.

“Where?” Aarron asked looking down at the map we had in front of us.

“I think it best if that remains undisclosed,” he cleared his throat.

“My wife will be with you,” Aarçon furrowed his brows.

“Your wife is the one who suggested this. I’ll be fine Aarron but the Luna is carrying our heir she needsthe utmost protection,” Elizebeth placed a hand on her husband’s back.

“I don’t like you being somewhere that I don’t know and couldn’t reach you,” he pushed.

“It’s my duty,” she crossed her arms.

“Fine,” he gritted his teeth. “Hide yourself away,” he glared at her but his eyes dragged to me.

“Enough. If this is their thoughts to keep the Luna safe they’ll do what they wish,” Leon shook his headat Aarron.

He seemed to be hanging onto the ire of Graysons‘ allegations when we were replaceing the mole.

We decided to hide me in the basement of my house but I had suggested that for the pure reason ofthe tunnel Grayson had run out to the forest I didn’t tell my protectors, but I knew I had a way out.

My mother and brother left me and I waited for two days before they battled. I spent the day in thedarkness of my basement and uncertainty.

“Calm Annette,” Amaria sat beside me putting on a movie. “They’ll return. Alpha blood as pure as yoursis not easily extinguished,”

“They’ll be back soon we will place sentries out to protect the outer areas,” Matt reminded me.

Charles wanted to root out any more undetected enemy camps. Grayson had left him a few defenseshe thought may be to cruel to use.

My brother had decided that we had passed the point of being kind.

We had traps, that the moment you touched them would snap on you with spikes. Grayson had themsilver–tipped for good measure.

It was over before the enemy could even realize they were coming from both sides, according toCharles.

I think he was more so thrilled at victory in his first battle. My mother said they had given their best atfighting but they were sorely unprepared.

“We sent them packing and the sentries are placed,” she informed me.

raps have been set, all of which should give them a taste of their own medicine,” Charlie told me.

“Many traps

The day after we sent them away a small group tried to sneak through but they were met with traps,triggered arrows, and silver nets. They were not prepared and not happy.

I never went anywhere alone but that wasn’t entirely bad.

I lay on the somewhat cushiony table and Charlotte spread the jelly on my belly my mother and brothershifting excitedly behind me.

The screen came up and this time on the screen instead of a small ball I saw a baby’s shape.

“Oh goddess,” my mother grabbed my hand. “Look at that,”

“Holy shit,” Charlie laughed.

“I know. Little toes and fingers that I’m making.” I smiled.

The whole thing did seem far–fetched having only been married less than six months, but the littleperson on the screen made all the darkness I’d seen worth it.

I grabbed my phone and recorded the screen. “He’ll want to see it like this,” I spoke aloud.

He looks strong Luna,” Charlotte smiled at me.

“You can tell? My mom leaned forward shocked analyzing the screen.

N–no but the Luna is sure and I trust her,” Charlotte blushed at the mistake.

“Oh of course,” my mother nodded to her.

“Please print me out a set as well, when he comes home he will for sure want to see the baby,” Iinstructed her.

Yes Luna She nodded.

She took a few blood samples to check my hormone levels and to see if there were any chromosomalabnormalities.

“Luna,” Aarron nodded to me. He had a purple jaw and a cut on his eyebrow from the battle.

“Aarron,” I acknowledged him.

“I trust that you and the babe are in good health,” he looked at my file.

“Yes of course,” I sighed.

“I’ll expect that once Grayson returns I’ll be taking over all of your appointments. You should start takingmore vitamins to be safe though,” he told me.

“She’s eating the right foods. Anna has helped many women grow their babes, and delivered twice thatshe knows what to do,” my mother beamed proudly of my accomplishments as a midwife,

“of

“Of course,” he gave a sharp nod to us and left.

“Mother, you shouldn’t do that Aarron has been upset since the mole incident-”

“He has no right you are his Luna, you and Grayson did the right thing. You can’t make everyone happyall the time

Anna,” she fixed my hair.

“I would like to have a good relationship with my husband’s council,1 took my hair from her hands andwalked my way out of the keep.

“the baby is safe.

I reached for him the second I could see the sun go down.

I felt incomplete with every passing day. I had my baby inside me but not the man who helped memake him. It felt wrong seeing the life we created alone.

I worried about him something about him felt like it had changed. I felt this grisliness whenever I reachfor him like an overgrown forest.

He’s facing the alpha blood head–on. Part of me wanted it to seize him in its dark protection. The otherpart, the part of his wife, lover, and mother of his child, that part wanted his soul safe.

After all the self–sacrifice I gave to see it, I wanted his soul as whole as it was when he left.

I rubbed my belly.

“come home to me

Come home to us. How could I go on if you didn’t, you changed everything for me, and now it’s alldifferent.

Now I was a wife, a mother, a Luna. I was someone on my own with my own standing and my ownfamily and I wanted it complete again.

But still…

“You should stay…” my heart felt like it was choking as I told him to stay.

Our ally had sacrificed himself and his men to help Grayson and if Grayson left the enemy would knowand they’d attack with all they had to get one of our allies down.

“What?” His shaky voice cut me deep.

“They’re expecting you to leave. They want you to leave Darren alone to attack, they have youcornered. I should send the cooter for the bodies but it should have more weapons and Charlic orMatt,” I told him hoping he would see reason and overlook our loneliness.

“I’ve been gone three weeks,” he sounded like he was begging me.

“So has Darren,” I brought up hesitantly. “If you leave they’ll know it and Darren won’t have hisstrongest defense right now. Stay finish the fight,” I felt cold asking him to continue to fight but we hadour duties.

“I’ll be home by tomorrow morning,” he resolved.

“Good, I’m barely hanging on,” I sighed. “I’ll be here waiting,”